July 22, 2010

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RAMADAN PREP TIP #4: START SPENDING TIME WITH THE QURAN

by Umm Muawiyah

Assalamu Alaikum.

I remember something my professor said about the average Muslim today. He said that the whole year round, they never pay any attention to the Quran, but when Ramadan comes, they want to finish the whole thing in a month! Subhan Allah, he hit the nail on the head.

This point brings up a few issues:

1) Ultimately, what is the difference between Ramadan and the other 11 months?

We need to please Allah in Ramadan and we also need to please Him in the other 11 months.

2) Why does the Quran take on such importance in Ramadan?

People will say that this is the sunnah, that the Prophet (salallahu alaihi wasallam) paid more attention to it. Yes, he paid MORE attention to it but he didn’t just pay attention to it in Ramadan.

His wife, Aisha, was asked about his character. What was her reply?

I (Saad ibn Hisham ibn Amir) said: “Mother of the Believers, tell me about the character of the Messenger of Allah (salallahu alaihi wasallam)”. She said: “Don’t you read the Quran?” I said: “Yes.” Upon this she said: “The character of the Messenger of Allah (salallahu alaihi wasallam) was the Quran.” [Saheeh Muslim, Hadeeth No. 1623]

[Note: It isn’t correct to refer to him as a “walking Quran”. Please read this fatwa for more information.]

So, the Prophet (salallahu alaihi wasallam) saw the Quran as something that needed to be applied – not just part of it but all of it.

3) Why are we being so pious in Ramadan?

Is it because we want to please Allah? Or is it because we see everybody doing it, so we follow along?

Yes, it’s easier to be more pious in Ramadan (and that’s why the devils are locked up). However, this doesn’t explain the phenomenon of reading a grand total of 0 pages in Shabaan, then racing through the entire Quran in Ramadan, only to read 0 pages in Shawwal. [No, I’m not joking. I used to do this!]

4) How do we start spending time with the Quran?

Well, start small. It’s okay, at least something is better than nothing. If you currently read 0 ayaat (verses) a day, then try to spend 5 minutes a day on the Quran (and make sure that you DO NOT sleep until you do this). Read the Quran every day without fail.

Then you can gradually increase the amount that you read. For those of you who don’t understand Arabic, PLEASE read it with a translation.

Can you listen to the Quran? Yes, but it won’t fulfill your obligation of having to read the Quran.

Do you have to finish the Quran in Ramadan? No, it is recommended but not mandatory. For those of you who barely read the Quran outside Ramadan, I think it’s better if you do not make this your goal. Rather, it would be better if you try to attempt to be regular so that you can continue reading the Quran daily after Ramadan. Perhaps you could focus on a few ajzaa (parts) along with the translation and some tafsir (explanation).

Of course, if you have the ability to read and understand more, then be sure to do more.

I also advise all of you to keep a Quran journal. What’s that, you ask?

MashAllah tabarakaAllah, beautiful reminder. I just posted this on Multaqa. I think we need to make the Qur`an ‘part’ of our daily life, and not just ponder over it during ramadan. Baraka Allah feeki, you said it best.